A Servant's Love
by La Moonlight Lily
Summary: Rachel Berry has had her eyes on Noah Puckerman since childhood but he never spared her a glance. After her return from Paris 5 years after graduation, does Puck finally notice her? And what does one Finn Hudson have to do with things? AU Based on Sabrina
1. A Little Girl's Dream

_**A/N: **_Hello there! First of all, thank you for clicking on this link ;P This is my first fic. Although I have attempted others before, the inspiration never really stuck around except with this one. Well, it's still not really sticking around since the chapters are short because for some reason I have some really irritating writer's block right now… Eh, I'm rambling. Anyway, there are a few things that need to be clarified before starting this story.

This is loosely based on the movie _**'Sabrina'**_ with Rachel being Sabrina, Finn the dashing older Mr. Larabee, and Puck as David Larabee, only him here being Carole's nephew whom she took in after her sister and her husband died in a car accident. Christopher Hudson will only be there in the first chapter, Kurt and Burt will be introduced in the next one.

Enjoy! :D

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 1: A Little Girl's Dream<strong>_

To say that the scenery in front of her eyes was merely beautiful would be a huge understatement. It was simply breath-taking, no, mesmerising even. Even though it was not the first time for here to lay eyes on such beauty, but one of many previous, the sight has never failed to make the eight-year-old's breath catch in her throat. The wide gardens were illuminated by ancient lamps, ones that have been passed through the Hudson family for many decades as she has recently learned, the light bringing out the breath-takingly marvellous and diverse colours that filled the area, the scent of the flowers making her eyes lids flutter shut every once few moments in order to enjoy the places her mind was taking her to.

She could see the dashing Mr. Hudson mingling with the crowd, easily conversing with each of his guests, his wonderful wife and long time sweetheart, Carole, on his arm, almost never leaving his side throughout the entire evening. It was not rare for the Hudsons to throw parties or galas at their large residence, or rather their mansion, but tonight was a special occasion. It was Christopher Hudson's 36th birthday and Carole had insisted throwing him a huge party, inviting almost everyone they knew of family and friends, even business acquaintances, despite him seeing absolutely no need for it.

"Now Christopher, you need to loosen up a bit, get some rest." She had heard Carole fondly chastise her husband. "A birthday party won't do any harm and it will even be a perfect opportunity to get on Victor Manila's good side and smooth things up a bit for that deal you're so anxious about." She smiled adoringly at him and leaned in to peck him quickly on the lips, him giving her an exasperated but fond smile, a sign of his surrender. As if he would refuse his wife anything, anyway. She knew Mr. Hudson Sr. loved his sweet Carole too much for that.

Awakened from her trip down the memory lane to the current time by a girlish, playful squeal, the young girl stared again from her vantage point up on that tree at all the sophisticatedly-dressed guests, lightly conversing and laughing while waiters passed around with silver and very heavy-looking trays holding glasses of very expensive, old champagne that was taken out of Mr. Hudson's liquor cabinet especially for the occasion, and delicious appetisers that made her mouth water just by looking at them and looked around, scanning the area with her chocolate orbs, finally locating the source of that squeal and felt her heart clench.

Giggling almost hysterically was Quinn Fabray, daughter of Russel and Judy Fabray, close friends of the Hudsons that they were almost considered s part of the Hudson family. Quinn was the definition of beauty, with long, flowing, blonde hair which she had never touched but would swear on her life was the softest mane of hair that has ever existed. Her eyes were screwed shut, hiding her captivating light green irises as she laughed at Noah Puckerman's childish and stupid antics, young Finn Hudson standing behind them, shaking his head with a small smile on his face. Although they were only eight, Noah was a flirt and a playboy since before he could utter two words, making all the older ladies simply adore him and all the little girls their age swoon, including herself.

Smiling sadly, young Rachel Berry shook her head as Quinn started giggling again merely moments after she had managed to compose herself as Noah kept waggling his eyebrows at her. Rachel gathered her pink jacket, a hand-made gift received from her grandmother last year for her birthday, tighter around her neck as she shivered from the late October breeze, the sad smile still etched on her pretty face. Ever since they had been little kids, younger than eight, which she determined was not young anymore, Rachel has always felt different whenever she was around Noah Puckerman, Carole Hudson's nephew. Granted, they did not speak much and he was not as nice as Finn, who was so cute and adorable it always made her grin, yet something has always drawn her to him and there was a small flicker of hope inside her that he would finally notice her the way he noticed other girls since he danced with her a few days ago as practice for his next dance class assignment, but that was quickly extinguished when she saw him tonight, behaving the way he was around his friends and fooling around with Quinn especially. Her dads were constantly telling her she was beautiful which she seriously doubted because honestly, she did not seem beautiful enough to catch Noah's eye. Sure, she might be pretty, but she would never be as pretty as Quinn or ever be able to buy clothes as nice as hers or dresses as pretty. To Noah Puckerman, she would always be just plain Rachel Berry, daughter of the family chauffeur and personal chef.

"Rachel!" The brunette started at her name being called and looked down to find her father standing at the bottom of the tree, his arms crossed and a disappointed look on his face. "Rachel, what are you doing up there? I thought we agreed you shouldn't spy on these parties anymore. Now get down here!"

Rachel sheepishly complied, slowly climbing down the tree so as not to make much noise and alert anybody else to her unwelcome presence.

"Sorry Dad. This will be the last time, I promise." She looked down guiltily, ashamed at both being caught and disobeying her father, only to feel his arms slowly wrapping around her tiny frame, drawing her to him and holding her to him tightly. Rachel only wrapped her arms around his much larger body and allowed herself to be comforted by her father's embrace.

She heard him sigh and start talking to her in a soft tone. "You were watching Noah again, weren't you?" Hiram Berry asked his daughter knowingly.

Rachel only nodded and let Hiram run his fingers through her long, shiny hair.

"If you would just tell me why you are just so attached to that boy. I mean, I would understand if it were Finn, the boy is so sweet it's impossible!" Hiram smiled before he continued, "But why Noah, sweetie? He's not even that nice to you!"

"I know Dad. Well… Well, I don't really know." Rachel admitted, her lips pouting slightly in a childish but adorable way.

Hiram chuckled and bent down to kiss the top of his young daughter's head, simultaneously feeling much sympathy for her at being so heartbroken at such a young age and very weary at what could happen when she grew up if that was the scenario at the ripe age of eight.

His fingers still combing through her hair, Hiram bent down to give her another kiss and said, "Come on, let's go inside. They are bringing out the cake for Mr. Hudson soon and your Daddy made another one especially for you!" He smiled softly as he saw Rachel's face light up and a small smile start to tug at the corners of her mouth, licking her lips unconsciously at the thought of the delicious cake Leroy left waiting for her in the kitchen.

"Good, because I'm hungry!" Rachel giggled, breaking out of her father's embrace and skipping inside, leaving Hiram watching her as she went, a loving smile gracing his lips.

"One day, my sweet Rachel. One day."

He slowly shook his head and made his way inside after his daughter, preparing himself for a scrumptious meal with his family.

* * *

><p>Thanks for reading! Reviews and constructive criticism are always greatly appreciated! :)<p>

Btw, this is un-betaed since I haven't found a beta yet, so I take responsibility for all mistakes.

The second chapter should be up sometime this week. Until next time!

_**Moonlight Lily**_


	2. Confessions

_**A/N: **_Alright, first of all I would like to thank all of you who reviewed this or added this story to their Alerts or Favourites. You guys made my week! :D

Second of all, in response to Emiii-gleex, no, this is NOT a Puckleberry fic. There will be a lot of Puckleberry interaction, but nothing really happens. This is Finchel, trust me. Just wait and see ;)

Last of all, I changed the name of the story from 'A Slave's Love' to 'A Servant's Love', so I hope I didn't confuse anybody.

Longer chapter this time. Hope you enjoy! :D

Oh, and I don't own anything. Not Glee, not the character, nada. –pouts;

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 2: Confessions<strong>_

"Ouch." Rachel winced as a bench roughly grazed her leg, leaving a few angry-looking scratches. With an irritated sigh she made her way up to the top of the tree, thanking God Almighty for the first and last time in her life he gave her such a tiny body so she could hide behind the thick branches of her beloved tree that she hadn't climbed in years. Sure, she'd promised her fathers that she wouldn't spy n parties anymore, but hell that was eight years ago and she was just a kid, so it doesn't really count. Besides, she was leaving for God knows how long and she just needed to see him one more time without being accused of stalking or obsession or something.

No matter how much her dads found it amusing to taunt her through telling her she was obsessed with Puck, Rachel found it all completely and utterly absurd. She didn't even know where they got that idea from. She was NOT obsessed with Noah Puckerman. Knowing that he adored high stacks of blueberry pancakes each morning for breakfast, drenched in butter and soaked with maple syrup and that his favourite types of food were seafood and basically anything Italian and that he never went to sleep without having a glass of warm milk that Carole Hudson insists on but he secretly spikes with scotch was called being a good servant. Keeping up with his latest flings was also called keeping up with gossip. She also literally jumps up and down every time she learns he got rid of one of those bimbos…

Well, maybe she was a _little _bit obsessed with him… Only a little, though.

Sighing dreamily, Rachel made herself comfortable, or as comfortable as she could, being curled into a ball on top of a tree _and _managing to remain completely unseen at the same time, and looked down, her eyes glued to the tall, muscular young man, the only young man who managed to make a mohawk look cute, despite his aunt calling it 'ridiculous' and him protesting and calling it 'badass'. He had just finished dancing with Santana Lopez, AKA the 'Queen of Bitches' (Rachel totally thought she would easily nail the 'Bitch of the Century' Award, if they ever made one), who has been shamelessly flirting with him since the beginning of the evening, him eying her body openly and appreciatively, her 'boyfriend', Puck's cousin and now the head of the house, Finn Hudson, watching from a distance, his face red and twisted into an ugly sneer.

"Excuse me, _Lopez_," Rachel heard him say so icily that it made her cringe, as he approached the couple. "I need to have a little chat with my cousin."

Grabbing Puck by the elbow, Finn dragged him right under Rachel's tree, to her immense joy, leaving Santana to go torture some poor girl who accidentally bumped her shoulder with hers.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Finn hissed as his cousin shrugged nonchalantly. "Dude, she just dumped me!" Finn said his eyes wide with disbelief.

'_Santana left Finn?' _Rachel thought with astonishment. _'Well, that's a first. Finn Hudson never got dumped.'_

"Exactly, she just dumped you, so she's off limits."

"She just brutally threw me on my ass and you're practically eye-fucking her! Jesus, Puck, I thought you were into the whole 'Bros before Hoes' thing." Finn almost pouted while the other boy just smirked at him.

"Dude, don't get your panties in a knot. I'm just appreciating a fine piece of ass while I can have it." Puck shrugged again. "Besides, let me keep her on her toes for nothing. Give her a taste of her own medicine." Puck quickly assured Finn, slightly soothing both him and Rachel.

While Noah Puckerman may be the biggest play boy around, Finn was like his brother and he would never do anything to hurt him, always having his back. Although it was something Puck never admitted out loud in order not to ruin his 'bad boy' reputation, it was something everybody who knew Puck and Finn realised with time and also something that made Rachel love Puck even more, him caring so much about people even if he never voiced it or didn't show it often.

Having trailed off previously, thinking of ways to viciously and quickly murder Queen Bitch without being caught, Rachel snapped out of her thoughts as Puck clapped a pouting Finn on the back.

"Come on man, cheer up. It's not worth all this. And it's Aunt Carole's night and it would really dampen her mood if she saw you so upset." Puck quickly coaxed his cousin out of his foul mood and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, rubbing his back soothingly.

Rachel felt her eyes tear up a bit as she remembered the occasion for today's party.

Carole Hudson's engagement.

Christopher Hudson had passed away four years earlier, suddenly and without warning. He just got really angry once about some deal or another which raised his blood pressure really high and caused a fatal stroke. By the time somebody had managed to call 911 and the paramedics arrived at the office, Christopher Hudson was long gone.

It wasn't abnormal, with the history of hypertension in Mr. Hudson's family, so it shouldn't have been do surprising. Except it was surprising, shocking even, since Mr. Hudson had never even complained of anything before, except mild cases of flu or head colds that could be quickly cured by some Advils. Then again, Mr. Hudson had never gotten so angry before either.

It was hard on everybody, from family and friends, to business associated, to servants around the Hudson estates, since Christopher Hudson was a man known for his good deeds and kindness to everybody. His loss was pretty difficult for everyone who knew him to deal with, but it was especially hard on Finn. Finn was very much like his father, who was his role model in life, with Finn always following his every footstep Christopher took, following his advice and guidance. It was very heartbreaking to see the look on Finn's face when he received the news of his father's death. He was calling to check on his mother as he and Puck returned from school and found her sobbing hysterically. He tried to make anything of what she was telling him, but to no avail. Well, he obviously did in a little while, somehow.

A few more tears escaped Rachel's lashes as the memory flashed in front of her eyes, Finn breaking down right in the middle of the driveway as the phone he was holding crashed to the concrete ground, Finn following immediately after, and Puck quickly grabbing the phone to reassure the secretary that took over the call from Carole's end of the line that he would take care of Finn and urged her to try and calm his hysterical aunt down. Puck kept on the attempts to calm Finn down enough in order to get him up to his room, a few tears trailing down his own cheeks, before giving up and motioning for Rachel's father to help him carry Finn up to his bed and for Leroy to get him a glass of cold water and, if he could, a sleeping pill or two.

It was a very long time before anybody accepted the fact that Mr. Hudson would no longer be around and for his family to move on, without Finn storming out or Carole tearing up every time somebody mentioned his name, but a year or so later, they finally did. Life was pretty normal and uneventful for the Hudsons and Puck from then on. That is, until Burt Hummel came into the picture.

Burt and Carole met in a Parents' Meeting once, about three years after her husband's death, as Burt's son, Kurt, went to the same private school she had enrolled Finn and Puck in for their years of high school and was even on the school's football team with them for a while, and it had been a turning point in both families' lives. Carole had never neglected her appearance by any means, she was still the sophisticatedly-dressed woman she has always been, but after Christopher's death, there was simply nobody to impress anymore, really. After she met Burt, though, she started taking care of herself a little bit more, styling her hair more often, and she even dyed it once, and buying some new clothes. It was good to see a genuine smile finally grace her features, since all those before Burt had always appeared tight and forced.

Finn was a bit hostile towards Burt at the beginning, causing him to do a few very foolish actions. He even picked fights with Kurt over the tiniest things sometimes, well not that Kurt would be completely innocent, but Finn really just overreacted a lot. After a few very serious talks with Burt, Carole, and –surprisingly- Puck, all of that stopped as Finn finally saw how happy Burt was making his mother and that he was in no way trying to replace his late father. His mum had been dating Burt for the past two years before he finally popped the question at the celebratory dinner after their sons' and Puck's graduation two weeks ago. Needless to say, a wide, almost face-splitting grin had never left Carole's face since then.

"Hey you guys, what are you doing back here?" Rachel was brought back from yet _another_ memory sequence (those things seemed to possess her every time she climbed that tree) by Kurt's voice as he approached his two friends, soon to be stepbrothers.

"Well, Finnessa here was whining about the Lady in Red dumping him on his ass before the party." He said with a teasing smirk, eying Santana's tight, red evening gown. "I was just lending him a shoulder to cry on- OWW! What the hell was that for, man?" Rachel giggled quietly as she saw Pucks' lips form a pout matching the one on Finn's face before rubbing his chest, where Finn had jabbed him sharply in the ribs.

"Don't make fun of me. Besides, this is new for me. No girl has ever left me before. I was always the one doing the heartbreaking!" Finn protested with a proud look on his face that made Kurt laugh out loud and Rachel clamp both of her hands over her mouth to prevent the laughter bubbling up her throat at their childish antics from coming out.

"Aw, come on, Finn. You're better off like this anyway. I never understood why you stayed with Miss Fake Boobs for a whole two months anyway!" Kurt said with an exasperated roll of his eyes.

"Hey, fake or not, the important thing is they're attached. That's the only thing that matters." Puck said, waggling his eyebrows and fist-bumping Finn, who sported a smug smirk.

"Urgh, you two are disgusting. Just… Eww." Kurt shook his head and Rachel couldn't agree with Kurt Hummel more, her heart sinking as she heard Puck brag about what he would do with Santana for the night before ditching her, even if it was for one night.

With teary eyes and an aching chest, Rachel Berry made her decision as she climbed down her tree quietly.

She had to tell him. Tonight.

* * *

><p>Finn Hudson could not be happier for finally managing to escape that party outside. Sure, his mum had this illuminating or radiating smile on her face or whatever and she looked so <em>so <em>beautiful, the party planner had outdone herself with the decorations tonight, their chef, Leroy had prepared some outstanding appetisers for them and an even more delicious, finger-licking meal after and he had finally gotten over the whole Santana thing. All of that might sound really, really well but he was really tired of Puck's comments about chicks all the time and Kurt's ramblings about some Broadway Musical or another. He just couldn't handle it anymore.

It was getting a bit chilly, so he went into the coat closet to get his coat out and maybe quickly smoke a cigarette out on the terrace before his mum noticed he was missing and came searching for him, giving him some long lecture about how smoking was bad for his lungs or whatever. He grabbed his coat and was about to go out when he felt someone clearing their throat, making him stop in his tracks.

"Who is it?" He called out.

"Um, I know you might find this a little weird, but… But I really need you to hear me out." He heard a feminine voice say. It sounded pretty familiar.

"What-"

"Please don't say anything. Just… Just listen to what I have to say." The girl on the other side of the door said desperately.

"Alright." Finn said with a sigh.

"I know… I know that you've never noticed me before, and you probably never will, but I… I've been keeping this in for so long I can't do it anymore. I need to let it out."

"Who are you?" Her voice was _so_ familiar; he just couldn't recall the person it belonged to. He started to walk towards the door when the girl shrieked, "No, don't come out yet!"

Finn froze, a bit surprised, but didn't come out, respecting the girl's wishes, whoever she was.

"You'll think I'm really crazy, and maybe I am. But I'm crazy about you." She said softly.

"Crazy about me?" Finn asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"Yes." He heard a hint of love and affection in her tone. Damn it. Who _was_ she?

"You might not know me, but I think I really know you. Better than anyone else."

"Do you, now?" He asked again, slowly and quietly making his way towards the door so as not to alert her of his movements. He was just so intrigued by her. He _needed_ to find out who she was.

"Yes, I… I love you." She said a little breathlessly as he finally came out, coming face to face with a blushing Rachel Berry.

"Rachel?" Finn stopped dead in his tracks. Rachel was in love with him?

"Oh my God, it's you, I'm… I'm so sorry, you weren't supposed to… God!" She clapped a hand on her forehead. He had never seen somebody blush so hard and thought she couldn't blush any harder.

He was clearly mistaken, since her face had turned almost beetroot red from embarrassment.

"Listen, Rachel-" Finn started before she cut him off hastily.

"No, Finn, I'm sorry. I thought you were… Never mind. Just forget this ever happened! Please!" Rachel begged desperately, her voice breaking at the end.

He barely managed to give her a small nod before she turned on her heel and bolted out of the door, leaving a confused, bewildered Finn frozen in his place, looking as if he had turned into a statue the way all of his muscles stayed still for a few good moments.

Finn blinked rapidly, trying to process what has just happened. The chauffeur's daughter had just confessed her love for him. Clearly, though, she thought she was talking to somebody else. He let out a sigh of relief. It wasn't that he didn't like Rachel. He did, he really did. She was a sweet girl and has always been a good companion of his when they were little, and even now sometimes and he just didn't want to break her heart. Rachel was a very pretty girl, and if maybe she decided to cut her long her a bit and manage it a little more nicely and get rid of those gigantic glasses, she would even look very beautiful, but he just wasn't in love with her. He might have been alright with hurting other girls before, but he would never want to do that to sweet, adorable Rachel.

With another sigh and a small shake of his head, Finn went back into the closet and put his coat back on the rack, deciding to just go back to the party and hoping that whoever this guy Rachel was so head over heels for would realise it already. Rachel deserved the best.

* * *

><p>Rachel Berry had never felt so humiliated in her life. She had always prided herself in her intelligence and intellectual way of speech that left people's mouths hanging open (well, she certainly made another jaw drop tonight, only for a completely different reason) and there she was, blabbering like a fool to somebody whom she thought was the love of her life, only to find out he was somebody else, his cousin and her master, no less. Well, she probably would've made a fool of herself as well if it was Puck. That was just the stupidest, most foolish idea she'd ever gotten. And how had she mistaken Finn for Puck anyway? She just went in after the first tall person she saw enter the closet room. <em>'Well, thank God it was Finn and not some stranger, I guess…'<em> She thought. And she should've known that wasn't Puck's voice or way of speaking. He was probably dry-humping Santana as she sat there, sobbing her heart out.

She wiped those annoying tears that kept blurring her vision, taking a deep breath then getting off the floor, wiping her eyes on more time with her sleeve, before making her way to her room, thanking the Lord her parents were not there to see her humiliation. After finishing the task of neatly arranging the rest of her belongings in her half packed suitcases, she changed into her nightgown and flung herself back on the bed. She didn't think she could ever face Finn after that strange _'conversation'_ they had today…

"Well, it's a good thing I'm going away for a long time then, I guess." She said to herself before turning off the lights, attempting to shove all thoughts of Finn or Puck out of her head so she can finally get some sleep. She had a big day tomorrow.

* * *

><p>Alright, not much dialogue in this one as well, but that'll change. The first couple of chapters were basically to describe what has been going on.<p>

Reviews are always very much welcome ;)

Until next time, peeps!

_**Moonlight Lily**_


	3. Off to Paris

_**A/N: **_I am sooo sorry for the delay but things have just been crazy! I'm deeply sorry, I really hope nobody's mad :( The reviews you have all left are really appreciated, thank you so much for them! Oh, and this chapter is edited by the beautiful CarmenMauri, so if you find anything wrong here, go pull at her hair, not mine :P

Enjoy!

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 3: Off To Paris<strong>_

Rachel blinked as the loud alarm clock gave a shriek-like ring right in her ear from the bedside table. Groaning loudly, she covered her head with her fluffy pillow and reached blindly for the offending object, trying unsuccessfully to shut the damn thing off before ending up knocking it down in the floor.

'_So cliché' _Was her first thought with much irritation at being woken up so early after having such a rough night. Groaning again as the golden sun rays started to seep into her room through the half open curtains, Rachel huffed and threw the pillow beside her and the covers off of her body, grudgingly giving up on trying to secure a few more minutes of much needed sleep. Sitting up, she retrieved the pillow once more and hugged it tightly to her chest, grinning widely as she remembered what day it was.

She was suddenly overwhelmed with this strangely tremendous urge to squeal, so she did. Getting up on her feet, she started jumping up and down on the bed like she used to when she was a little girl, loving the feeling the bouncy mattress was creating. She just kept tossing her hair around and screaming like a 5-year-old. The bouncing and squealing continued for about ten minutes before Rachel fell down on her back, bouncing a bit on the mattress before finally settling down and managing to get a hold of herself, still grinning like an idiot at her glowing star-covered ceiling.

Finally getting up, Rachel bent down, deciding to retrieve her poor alarm clock off of the floor, and thank God it had fallen on her fluffy rug, because it held a very soft spot in her heart; it had been a gift from Christopher Hudson, which had been given to her when she was five. He always brought something for the workers' kids back from his business trips, even if it was so little. It was the thought that counted.

Looking at her beloved clock, she saw that she had about forty-five minutes to shower and get ready.

"Rachie?" She heard her father knock softly on the door. "Are you awake yet, sweetheart?"

"Yeah Dad, I'm up!"

"Alright, well hurry up and get out here. Your Daddy's making a big breakfast for you!"

"Ok Dad, just give me a few minutes." Rachel said happily before putting her tiny feet into her adorable, pink bunny slippers and making her way to the small bathroom adjoining her room to her fathers', quickly shedding her clothes and hopping into the shower.

The hot water was blissful. Not only did it do wonders to her aching muscles, but it also took her mind off Finn, Puck and everything that had happened the night before, making her go from semi-depressed Rachel back to happy-go-lucky Rachel in mere seconds. She started to hum a soft tune while applying her vanilla-scented shampoo, but that quickly changed to just singing the song at maximum volume. And she honestly couldn't have chosen a more appropriate song for that day.

'_Don't tell me not to live, just sit and putter_

_Life's candy and the sun's a bowl of butter_

_Don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade_

_Don't tell me not to fly, I've simply got to_

_If someone takes a spill, it's me and not you_

_Who told you you're allowed to rain on my parade'_

She was singing with such vigour, she wouldn't be surprised if people were piling outside the bathroom door at the moment, wondering what had gotten into her.

'_I'll march my band out, I'll beat my drum_

_And if I'm fanned out'_

With a softer tone, she continued, holding the shampoo bottle to her lips.

'_Your turn at bat, Sir_

_At least I didn't fake it, hat, Sir_

_I guess I didn't make it…'_

* * *

><p>Hiram smiled at his husband, who grinned back at him as they heard their daughter singing her heart out in the shower.<p>

"She's gotten so big, hasn't she?" Hiram said with a proud smile.

"Oh she certainly has. So fast, too." Leroy responded, not looking up from the eggs he was frying.

"I don't know how I'm going to manage without my daughter for all these years, Roy, I really don't. We shouldn't have let her accept that scholarship in France." Hiram sighed, putting his head in his hands.

"Oh, come on, you know this is good for her. It's an opportunity of a lifetime, a chance no one can ever refuse. And you know she wants this, it's what she's always wanted." The dark-skinned man took out the croissants that had been baking for the last fifteen minutes out of the oven and started arranging them on a plate.

"Two things Rachel has always dreamed of: Studying theatre and being able to get out of the country for a while, explore other cultures. This might be her only chance, Hiram."

"Well, what if something happens to her there? What if she gets hurt or mugged or something and we're not there to help her?"

"Hiram, you're overreacting." Leroy said calmly, finishing lining up everything on the table in an elegant pattern before taking a seat next to his husband. "Rachel's not a little girl anymore. She's seventeen, she can take care of herself. Besides, she won't be all alone there, there will be other American students in the programme as well, and you know Rachel anyway. She'll have a bunch of new best friends before you can say waffles." He said with a fond smile.

"You're talking as if you're ok with everything. As if letting her go for four or five years has no effect on you." Hiram said quietly, running a hand through his hair.

"Of course it's affecting me. She's my baby girl and I love her to pieces. I can't imagine what it will be like without her around for all this time, but I also want to do everything in my power to make my Rachel happy. If this is what makes her happy, I'm willing to make the sacrifice."

'_One roll for the whole sheb-AHH!' _They suddenly heard Rachel yelp and the sound of bottles clattering to the tiled floor and they just stared at each other in shock for a moment. Leroy quickly jumped off of his chair to go make sure Rachel was alright before he heard her singing again, as if nothing had just happened.

'_One throw that bell will go clang,_

_Eye on the target and wham…'_

He sat back down and looked at his longtime partner before they both burst out laughing, Hiram tearing up slightly as they finally stopped.

"Ah, Rachel. She never does let anything get in the way of a performance, does she?" He said, sniffling slightly.

Leroy smiled at him before reaching over the table and taking his hand in his larger one, giving it a small squeeze.

"It'll be alright, Hiram. She'll be just fine.

* * *

><p>Rachel used her soft loofah to softly and quickly lather her body with her peach and cream shower gel, quickly washing the soap off as she belted out the final notes of <em>'Don't Rain on My Parade', <em>the conditioner bottle held at her lips, serving as the makeshift microphone this time. Opening the door to the cabinet, she stepped out onto the rug right outside the door and grabbed a large, fluffy towel, quickly drying her body before wrapping it around herself, tucking the corner in and securing it right above her small breasts. She grabbed a smaller towel and started dabbing at her hair while walking back into her room. Throwing the small towel on her bed, Rachel grabbed her hairbrush and sat in front of her dresser, quickly combing her ridiculously long hair, or as quickly as she could, and working out the knots.

Taking the bottle of light pink nail polish from her dresser, the brunette started painting her nails carefully, blowing at them to dry them more quickly, then started working on her toenails, stretching her small feet in front of her to see how they looked. Quickly applying some light pink strawberry lip gloss, she walked over to her small closet and took out the dark, short-sleeved navy dress with tiny white polka dots all over it, that hit right above her knees and a pair of navy ballerina flats.

Throwing her clothes on and quickly clasping her beloved gold star necklace around her neck, Rachel happily skipped out the door, a heavenly amazing smell filling her nostrils.

"Mmm, something smells delicious!" She said as her dads looked up from whatever hushed conversation they were having.

"Hey Princess." Hiram said, smiling wickedly. "Went a bit off key today, eh?"

" I slipped." Rachel muttered with an embarrassed flush rising up her cheeks as her other father playfully poked his partner in the arm and stood up to greet her.

"Good morning, sweetie." Leroy said with a smile, kissing her cheek.

"Morning, Daddy." Rachel returned the gesture. "What's for breakfast? Dad said you had something big cooking!"

"Ah yes! A breakfast fit for royalty!" He took Rachel by the shoulders, leading her to her chair. "You, Your Highness, will sit right here, at the head of the table."

Rachel giggled as Leroy pulled her chair out for her and sat down gracefully, looking around at all the covered plates covering almost every inch of their tablecloth.

"Since you'll be in Paris for a long time and won't be able to have a decent, old-fashioned American breakfast, I've decided to make you a few of your favourite dishes, along with a few French dishes, for you to get a taste of French cuisine before you go." Her father grinned and started uncovering all the plates in a sequence.

"First we have a few stacks of blueberry pancakes and chocolate chip pancakes and here are another three plates of waffles. Of course, you have sides of every syrup and topping you can imagine: Maple syrup, chocolate, caramel, whipped cream, the works." Rachel just watched in awe as her father rambled on.

"Your favourite scrambled eggs over here and some bowls of fruit over there. Really, everything you could wish for: Strawberries, peaches, pineapples… Hey, there are just too many for me to mention." Leroy grinned as Rachel started giggling once more before going off again.

"Over there, Your Highness, are some freshly baked _croissants au chocolat_, some _tartines_ with jelly and jam on the side, a plate of crêpes, and, for a drink, there is orange juice, hot chocolate and vanilla-flavoured cappuccino. That is basically it."

"That's it?" Rachel asked, her eyes wide. "But Daddy, this is too much! I'm never gonna be able to eat all of this by myself!"

"Hey, none of that, sugar. You just enjoy a good meal while you can and your father will take care of any of your leftovers."

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Hiram protested with a small frown.

"Come on, Hiram, you know you eat a lot. I don't know how you stay in shape with all that food you're shoving down your throat!" Leroy gave him a teasing grin and he turned to Rachel for support, who merely shrugged with a smile.

"Well, let's face it, Dad, you sort of just… Eat anything." She gave the bespectacled older man a toothy grin.

"I hate it when you guys team up on me like that." Hiram just shook his head with a fond smile as his daughter high-fived his husband.

"Well, what are you waiting for, sweetheart? Dig in!" Her other father said, straightening his uniform and kissing the top of her head.

"You're not eating with us?" Rachel frowned.

"Well, I have to serve breakfast in a few and I really need to finish making all those pancakes. The Hummels stayed over last night and you know Kurt loves those cakes as much as Noah." Leroy sighed.

Rachel just pouted but rose from her seat and threw her arms around her father, hugging him tightly.

"I'm gonna miss you, Daddy. So much." She whispered brokenly.

"I'm going to miss you too, Rachie." Leroy tenderly kissed her temple and held her closely for a few moments before reluctantly pulling away, his eyes misty with tears. "Go on. Finish your breakfast and your father will drive you to the airport. I need to go check on the food before it burns!" Rachel nodded, a lone tear making its way down her cheek and her father hugged her one more time before making his way out of their small quarters, his back hunched and his stride not as strong as it usually is.

Sitting back down, Rachel took a shuddering breath and grabbed her knife and fork. "Come on, serve me before this gets cold! I'm hungry!" She demanded with faux haughtiness.

Hiram just chuckled and began to pile all kinds of food on both of their plates. "Your wish is my command, your highness."

* * *

><p>Finn grumbled and turned on his belly as Kurt kept shaking him in a futile attempt to wake him up.<p>

"Finn, just get up already! Breakfast's in fifteen minutes, which barely gives you time to shower and get dressed!"

"Just go away." Finn threw his pillow at Kurt and turned the other way, trying to block his friend's annoying, high-pitched voice.

"Finn, come on, please! I still need to wake Puck up!"

"Then go annoy him and leave me alone!" He grumbled just as Kurt gave up shaking his much larger body and started jumping up and down on the bed instead, making Finn growl before he blindly swung his arm around, trying to reach the smaller boy's legs and make him topple back on the bed. He almost succeeded a couple of times, but Kurt managed to dodge his mad swings.

"Come on, wake up wake up wake up!" Kurt started chanting while jumping, knowing it would definitely annoy the other boy.

"Ugh, fine! I'm up! Just go away now!" Finn grumbled again and rolled over onto his back, rubbing his eyes and blinking away the sleep as Kurt settled down beside him, sitting cross-legged on the mattress.

"Why are you still here?"

Kurt snorted. "You think I'd fall for that? I'm not getting out of your hair until you get your lazy ass out of bed and I hear the water running in the bathroom. On second thought, I'll even walk you into the shower myself."

"I hate you."

"I hate you too, dear brother. Now get up!"

Finn slammed his fist on the mattress before getting up and padding to the spacey en-suite bathroom. Taking off his night shirt and boxers, he sighed in relief as he heard Kurt happily strutting out of his room and quickly stepped into the shower, turning on the water and lathering his hair and body with shampoo and soap. He quickly washed off the lather and wrapped a towel around his waist. He went back to his room and let out a low chuckle as he heard Kurt nagging Puck down the hall, Puck letting out a string of curses that would make a sailor blush at being woken up so early after turning in late.

Pulling on a pair of dark jeans and a deep blue button down shirt, he applied a little bit of gel to his hair, just to keep it from sticking everywhere, and some cologne. Making his way down to the dining room, he found his mother and Burt already sitting at the table, having a hushed conversation and making googly eyes at each other. Rolling his eyes at the happy couple, he cleared his throat, making them both look up.

"Morning Mum." He leaned down to kiss her cheek. "Morning Burt."

"Morning, buddy." Burt replied. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah, I did. How about you? You look pretty tired. In fact, you both seem to have dark circles under your eyes. Long night?" Finn smirked wolfishly at them and sat down, ignoring his mother's outraged 'Finn!'

"Well, what can I say, kid? Your mother's a very demanding woman." Burt grinned back at Finn and gave him a little wink, making Carole blush.

"No! Not the hair!" They heard Kurt yell and "Finn craned his neck to see Puck messing up Kurt's hair, as they walked down the stairs, while Kurt swatted his hands away, an amused, but slightly annoyed, expression on his face.

"Serves you right for annoying the hell out of me and Finster this morning." Puck retorted, fist-bumping Finn and greeting his aunt and Burt, also kissing Carole on the cheek like Finn had done earlier.

Just as they had all settled down, their personal chef entered the room, wheeling a cart full of plates that held their breakfast for the day. Finn frowned when he saw Leroy arranging the plates by himself, as Rachel usually accompanied him before she walked over to her school.

"Good morning, gentlemen. Ms. Carole." Leroy nodded politely and gave them a soft smile.

"Hey, Leroy. Um, where's Rachel?" Finn blurted out curiously, ignoring the inquisitive stare Puck directed at him. Was she hiding from him because of the night before?

"Oh, Rachel should be on her way to the airport now. She's leaving for Paris."

"Paris?" Finn cocked an eyebrow.

"Yes, Mr. Hudson. She's been accepted into a scholarship programme to the _Conservatoire de Paris_ along with a few others. They're interested in American students this year for some reason. Tea, Ms. Carole?" He asked politely.

"Yes, please, Leroy." The man poured his mother tea before moving to serve Burt.

"Well, what is she gonna study there? Oh, and some juice, please." Finn said.

"Well, the _Conservatoire_, you can say, is the French version of Julliard." He moved to pour Finn his drink. "And you know Rachel, she's had her eyes on Broadway since she was a toddler, really." He said fondly.

"Well, why didn't she just apply to Julliard?" Finn frowned. "We do live in New York, after all."

"Ah, Mr. Hudson, I'm sure you're familiar with the thrill of travelling abroad, exploring the world. Especially since it's Paris and all." He served Kurt and Puck and started to roll the cart away, only stopping when Finn addressed him once more.

"Wait... If she's going there to study, how come she's leaving now? I mean, school doesn't start until September."

"The programme includes a two month stay in Paris before term starts, to get familiar with the city, then they have their years of university and a one-year internship after they graduate, getting them roles in a few plays before they return home."

"Oh, well, what is she studying?"

"Well, Leroy and I were very happy that she got accepted into both the Conservatoire for Drama and the one for Music and Dance, so she's opted to study all three subjects." Leroy quickly explained, not wanting to intrude on the family having their breakfast by chatting with Finn, as nice as it was.

"Oh... Well, tell her I said hi. And wish her my best." Finn said, for some reason feeling a bit down that Rachel would no longer be around to cheer him up like she did when he broke that toy of his when he was six, or when his dad died, or after his mum started her relationship with Burt...

Leroy nodded with a smile. "Will do, Mr. Hudson. Thank you for you for your concern. Excuse me gentlemen. Ms. Carole." He slightly bowed his head and rolled the cart away, leaving Finn absently picking at his food.

"Hey bro. You alright?" He felt Puck gently nudge his shoulder.

"Yeah." Finn said with a small start. "Yeah I'm fine. Why?"

"I dunno, your face just went all blank all of the sudden. And what's with all the questions anyway?" Puck asked, shoving a mouthful of blueberry pancakes into his mouth. "Since when did you become interested in Berry?"

"Noah, don't talk with your mouth full." Carole scolded and Puck grudgingly nodded.

"Nothing Puck, don't worry your pretty bald head about it." Finn said, making Puck scowl, but he actually dropped the subject. Finn focused back on his plate, trying to shove out all thoughts of Rachel Berry that had suddenly invaded his mind.

* * *

><p>"We're here." Hiram announced, making Rachel, who was so engrossed with the scenery outside the window, or rather the lack of it, start a little.<p>

"Oh. Already?" She murmured blankly.

"Yes, sweetheart. The traffic wasn't really heavy this morning." Hiram popped the trunk and got outside to get Rachel's bags. "You don't sound very excited."

"I am, I just…" Rachel bit her lip. "I'm just gonna really miss you and Daddy." She said sullenly.

"Oh, Rachie." Hiram dropped the bags on the ground and closed the trunk, moving to draw Rachel into a tight embrace. "We're going to call you every day, lovely. And you're going to have _so_ much fun over there. It'll be worth it, I promise."

Rachel nodded and untangled her small frame from her father's. "Come on, we need to go in, they'll be boarding soon." She grabbed one of her suitcases while her father carried the other one.

She sat down on one of the comfortable waiting chairs and her dad asked her if she wanted something to drink. Replying that she would like a caramel macchiato, her father left to get them their drinks and leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand.

"Ah, finally! These things are way too heavy! Did you bring your whole damn wardrobe?"

"No, just about half of it. And quit whining, will you? I'm tired of it." A stout African-American girl plopped down on the seat beside hers, followed by a blond boy who was heavily panting and sported a red face, no doubt from the heavy exertion.

"I just don't understand why girls always have to carry around so much." The boy complained, waving off her words, and the girl beside her huffed in annoyance.

"Are we really going to go over this again? I told you, Sam, this is Paris we're going to, and we're going to be attending the _Conservatoire de Paris_, which means we need to make a good impression, especially fashion-wise. I am _not_ wearing the same outfit more than once for at least two weeks!"

The girl's words caught Rachel's attention and she straightened her back, turning to look at her.

"You're going to the _Conservatoire_, too?" Rachel asked.

The girl turned from her conversation with her companion and faced Rachel.

"Yeah. You're part of their scholarship programme?" She asked excitedly.

"Yes!" Rachel beamed then extended her hand. "I'm Rachel. Rachel Berry."

The other girl shook her hand with a smile. "Mercedes Jones. And this is Sam, we went to school together." Mercedes motioned to the boy beside her, who reached over her to shake Rachel's hand as well.

"Sam Evans. Nice to meet you, Rachel." Sam chuckled as Rachel shook his hand absently, too occupied, gawking at his mouth. She let out a mortified gasp as she realised she'd been staring and clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to stare!" An embarrassed flush rose on her cheeks.

Mercedes just grinned and Sam shook his head at her, amusement dancing in his eyes.

"No, it's alright. It's pretty hard not to." He said with a smile and Rachel took a deep breath, relieved that he was not offended.

"So which Conservatoire did you get into, Rachel?" Mercedes asked kindly, quickly defusing whatever awkwardness was left in the air.

"Both, actually." Rachel replied. "I want to be on Broadway someday, so I'm studying every course they're offering."

"Damn, girl! You're studying Music, Dance _and_ Drama?" Mercedes' eyes widened. "Good Lord, how on earth are you going to manage that?"

"Well, I'm a natural multi-tasker." Rachel let out a small laugh. "What are you guys majoring in?"

"Well, Mercedes here is gonna be in Music, and I'm double majoring in Music and Dance."

"Oh, so you and I will have most of our classes together, Sam!" Rachel beamed and felt somebody tapping her shoulder. She turned around to find her father smiling at her, her macchiato and a cappuccino for him in his hands.

"Oh, thanks Dad!" She took her drink and motioned to Sam and Mercedes. "Dad, this is Mercedes Jones and Sam Evans. They're going to school with me!"

"Oh, hey there." Hiram said and the other two kids waved at him, smiling.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Berry!" Sam said.

"Nice to meet you too, Sam." Hiram chuckled. "Wow, your father was right. That _was_ fast."

"What was?" Rachel frowned as Sam and Mercedes looked at each other in confusion.

"Wait, if you're her father, then who is..." Mercedes trailed off and Rachel smiled.

"My Dads are gay. And _what_ was fast, Dad?"

"Nothing, dear. Drink you macchiato." He sipped on his cappuccino and Rachel let it drop. The four of them chatted some more before they heard their call.

"_Air France Flight 518 will start boarding now. Passengers please report to your gate."_

"Alright, this is us." Sam said and stood up, lifting up his and Mercedes' bags. "It was very nice to meet you, Mr. Berry. And we'll take care of Rachel, I promise." He smiled warmly and headed for the gate with Mercedes in tow.

"This is it, Dad." Rachel said sadly.

"This is it, Princess." Hiram hugged her tightly and kissed her cheek. "You take care of yourself, alright?"

"I will, Dad." Rachel nodded and grabbed her bags.

"And call us as soon as you get there!"

"Yes, Dad." Rachel smiled and turned around, taking a deep breath and striding confidently towards her two new friends, not seeing her father wipe off a stray tear.

* * *

><p>"Rachel... Rachel... Rachel!"<p>

"What?" She said groggily, thankful that whoever that annoying person that was vigorously shaking her had stopped.

"You need to tie your seatbelt, we're going to land in a few minutes!" Rachel blinked and Mercedes' blurred face slowly came into focus.

Letting out a tiny, tired moan, followed by an even more tired yawn, Rachel sat up and tied the seatbelt around her waist, her muscles aching from the odd angle her body was twisted in.

"God, I'm exhausted." She tiredly rubbed her eyes and Mercedes patted her shoulder soothingly.

"I know, girl, you slept like a baby! You didn't get much sleep last night?"

"No, I did." Rachel sighed. "It just wasn't my most comfortable night."

"Well, however uncomfortable it was, it must've been way more comfortable than this!" Mercedes chuckled and Rachel's eyes averted to Sam, who had managed to fall back asleep with drool going down his chin, after tying his own seatbelt.

Rachel giggled and shook her head. "Poor Sam."

After landing, and an excruciatingly slow half-hour-wait for their luggage, the three made their way to where the driver sent to them by the school was waiting. They were joined by a quiet Asian girl with fuchsia streaks in her silky black hair, whom they later learned was called Tina.

"Welcome to Paris, Mesdemoiselles et Monsieur." He nodded to them and they nodded back. In a heavy French accent, he continued. "Alright, I will need to call your names just to check. Rachel Berry?" Rachel raised her hand and he nodded. "Tina Cohen-Chang? Sam Evans, and Mercedes Jones?" They all repeated Rachel's gesture and he nodded once more. "Please follow me."

They followed him outside silently to find two cars waiting for them. Instead of splitting up, they decided to all get into one car and let the other carry their belongings. After loading their luggage, Sam got into the passenger seat while the three girls all got into the back seat.

"So, Tina, are you from New York too?" Mercedes asked.

The other girl nodded shyly but didn't reply. There wasn't much conversation and between them during the ride as, they were all pretty knackered and Sam even almost fell asleep again. Twenty minutes after taking off from the airport, they arrived at their destination. A tall, slim woman clad in black formal attire, a haughty look on her face, was waiting for them at the entrance.

"Oh, good, you are finally here. Parlez-vous Français?" She said snottily and a bit grumpily. The three girls nodded but Sam just looked awkward. "Uh, no. Not really."

The woman rolled her eyes but continued in English, which was clearly irritating her. "My name is Isabelle Bordeaux and I will be your guidance counsellor during your stay in Paris. You can call me Mademoiselle Bordeaux." Isabelle looked at some papers in her hands. "Which of you is Mercedes Jones?"

Mercedes looked at Sam, then at Rachel, then turned to look back at Isabelle. "I am."

"Well, you're going to share a room with Rachel Berry,"

Mercedes breathed out in relief and directed a small smile towards Rachel.

"Tina Cohen-Chang, you are going to share a room with Vanessa Mathews and Sam Evans with Mike Chang, both of whom have already arrived. Please follow me."

Walking inside towards the reception desk, Isabelle extracted four folders, giving a folder to each of the students.

"Those folders contain your room numbers, campus maps and everything else you need to know, such as important dates and events. Now off to your rooms, you will need to rest for tomorrow's orientation at precisely 8 o'clock in the morning. Off you go." She quickly dismissed them and walked away.

"Well, she's certainly going to be pleasant to work with." Rachel snickered.

"Yeah." Sam chuckled. "Alright, ladies. I'll see you tomorrow at 8."

"Bye Sam." Mercedes said and Rachel gave him a small wave, which he returned, before going off in the direction of the girls' dorm, Tina trailing silently behind. They got to Tina's room first and she quietly bade them goodbye, leaving them to go to their own room.

"Well, this is us." Rachel said as she set her bags down.

"Hey, it's actually pretty decent." Mercedes said, looking around the room. It wasn't exactly very spacey, but it wasn't small either; just comfortable enough. They knew that simply adding a few Mercedes-Rachel touches would make the room perfect.

"Alright, we need to unpack so I can go pass out." Mercedes said with a sigh and Rachel nodded. They started to unpack their belongings, arranging their stuff around the room and hanging their clothes in the closet, too tired to be excited for the next day, or for anything at the moment.

As soon as her head hit the soft pillow, Rachel's brain immediately shut down, but not before happiness filling her soul thoughts of her future Broadway career flashed before her tired eyes, followed by some thoughts of Puck, and, finally, immense regret as the image of one freckle-faced Hudson that she left back home and never said goodbye to appeared. With that, she drifted off to deep sleep.

* * *

><p>Reviews and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated!<p>

Until next time, you sexy, sexy people.

_**Moonlight Lily**_


	4. Apologies

My dear readers,

I would like to apologise for the ridiculously long wait for the next chapter, it was never the intention for me to take so long writing it. Unfortunately, the wait is not over yet. Many circumstances in my life have prevented many attempts to write the chapter and, along with a case of severe writer's block and the occasional lack of internet have prevented any actual progress with the chapter.

Chapter 4 will also be titled 'Apologies' and will take this author's note's place as soon as it's finished. As a hint, it will also contain a letter pretty similar to the one you are reading now :). I am working on it right now and it should be up soon, although I cannot state a certain date or period for it. I apologise once more and I promise I will do my best to provide you with a good read as soon as possible.

Many thanks,

Moonlight Lily


End file.
